Education in Harmony - Supporting Vulnerable Children in Host Communities

This project aims to improve the lives of vulnerable Egyptian and Syrian children in Cairo Alexandria and Damietta by addressing immediate education and child protection needs and by promoting social cohesion in refugee hosting communities. Egypt has seen a major influx of refugees following the onset of the Syrian crisis. Children are the most vulnerable group in both refugee and host communities and Egypt’s Ministry of Education is struggling to cope with additional demands. Project activities include: (1) training teachers on gender and conflict sensitive educational practices child protection peace education psychosocial support and improved teaching methodologies; (2) providing education kits and holding remedial classes for vulnerable children; (3) renovating schools and water and sanitation facilities; (4) providing educational materials and basic furniture; (5) providing training to school management and government representatives to increase their capacity in school governance education in emergencies monitoring and evaluation of educational services and child protection; and (6) building community cohesion though gender sensitive awareness campaigns peace education workshops and recreational programs. Up to 10 450 Syrian and Egyptian girls and boys aged 4 to 14 participate in the project as well as 860 teachers 125 school management and 305 government representatives from the local to national level. The project forms part of Canada’s comprehensive response to the regional impact of the Syrian crisis.

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) Improved access to quality formal and non-formal education in a protective learning environment for vulnerable school-aged children from Syria and Egypt; (2) increased ability of communities and schools to address barriers to education for vulnerable girls and boys; and (3) enhanced quality of gender responsive inclusive and protective learning environments for pre-primary and primary education for refugee and host community children.